Space CampSpace Camp
Zero gravity meets zero fear in this cosmic comedy-adventure about a summer camp where regular kidscheck in and real astronauts check out! Starring Kate Capshaw, Lea Thompson, Kelly Preston, Larry B. Scott, Leaf Phoenix and Tate Donovan, SpaceCamp is a wild and wonderful thrill-ride packed with ‘special effects’spectacular moments (Film Journal) and a gripping climax (Time Out) that’s out of this world! For five typical teens, NASA’s space camp promises to be a fun wayto blow off the summer.
Rating:  List Price: $ 14.98 Price: $ 6.98
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(out of 75 reviews)
Review by Darren Harrison for Space Camp
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When the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 occurred the movie “Collateral Damage”was pulled from release, to be postponed for months after the incident. It’s also quite common for television stations to pull a scheduled showing of a disaster movie when a real-life disaster occurs. However, there is perhaps no more glaring example of bad timing having an adverse affect on a movies chances than SPACECAMP.
It’s 1986 and the United States feels pretty good about itself. It’s clearly winning the Cold War and under the Reagan administration the country feels strong and prosperous. The U.S. also seems to be winning in the space race too with the first teacher set to go up on a shuttle mission and a movie on a group of kids being accidentally sent into space due to be released among a slate of fun summer movies.
Yet all that changed on Jan. 28, 1986 when the United States (along with the rest of the world) is rocked by the explosion of the space shuttle Challenger. Initially scheduled for a June release date the family movie “SpaceCamp” is pushed back into the doldrums of the fall, it seems the country is not able to stomach a movie that makes light of the dangers of space travel when the country is in the shadow of a real-life disaster.
This was highly unfortunate and the lack of box office has meant that this movie has been mostly forgotten. Sure, there is no Oscar worthy performances here and the script seems to be somewhat sophomoric at times, but it is entertaining in its execution, with a great soundtrack by the legendary John Williams and it has an appealing cast headed by the gorgeous Lea Thompson (from the Back to the Future movies) and (future wife of Steven Spielberg and female lead in the second Indiana Jones movie) Kate Capshaw. Also featured is the always excellent Tom Skerritt as Cmdr. Zach Bergstrom..
The movie follows four teens (Thompson, Larry B. Scott, Kelly Preston and Tate Donovan) and one pre-teen Max (Joaquin Phoenix – yes, you read that right) who get launched into space after a small robot decides to make Max’s dream of being in space a reality.
In the space shuttle for a look-see the teens (along with their instructor playes by Capshaw) must launch after a crisis with the solid fuel boosters is manufactured by the good intentions of the robot (incidently, this was also a cause of the real-life Chalenger disaster).
Truth be told Max is an annoying character and the presence of the robot obtrusive and also annoying. But the movie as a whole is mildly diverting and entertaining. Thompson never looked more appealing and it was this movie (not the Back to the Future trilogy) that led me as a 15-year old to develop a teenage crush on the actress.
The movie has its adreneline rish moments, its suspense and excitement. It’s a pure popcorn movie to sit back and enjoy on a rainy Saturday. It’s not high class entertainment, but then again it was never meant to be.
Unfortunately the DVD is lacking in special features. Hopefully, this will be rectified by the studio soon.
Review by for Space Camp
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I remember flipping through the channels at home and came across a preview for this on HBO. I sat down and watched it. I was hooked! When I saw at the end that it was filmed at the US Space Camp, I ran to the Post Office to look up Huntsville, AL’s ZIP code and I sent a letter off. I got info. I worked hard the summer of ’88. I was only 12 but everything I earned went towards my trip to Space Camp in Florida (which had just opened that year). I remember the trip down there by van with my dad and two bothers. All the way from southern Minnesota to Florida by van. My brother quizzed me on every system of the shuttle and I wound up being Commander of my team.What’s this got to do with the movie? Well, if not for this movie, I never would have gone there. This movie inspired me to reach beyond what I think I can do and ‘reach for the stars’. This movie taught me that anything is possible. I loved this movie then, but today I understand even more what it did for me. Great movie, great story.
Review by for Space Camp
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I saw this film when it came out on video in the United States in the mid 1980s. It was mere months after the Challenger disaster and the U.S. just wasn’t in the mood to watch five plucky kids and their astronaut leader be accidentally launched (safely) into space and return (safely) home. NASA’s cooperation on the film was total and it might mystify those who weren’t aware of the internal politics at NASA at the time, who was deathly afraid of losing the public’s interest in space travel, which at the time of the Challenger explosion was seen as “routine.” NASA’s participation in this film surely was meant to spark renewed interest in the shuttle program.That being said, the film is a LOT of fun for kids. I was only 11-12 years old when I saw it and I thought it was the BEST film ever made. To this day it is a guilty pleasure. I attended Space Camp myself in 1988 at the age of 13, and though the camp had changed noticeably in just the 2-3 years since the movie was filmed, certain parts of the camp stood out obviously as locations from the film. To rebut the Amazon reviewer, there ARE standards for the camp and you must have written recommendations from science and math teachers to attend. Incidentally, Space Camp is actually located in Huntsville, Alabama, but like the hundreds of other inaccuracies of the film, that is too overlooked. Interesting sidenote: the bulk of the movie was filmed inside one of the Space Camp’s shuttle simulators. All said, the film is fun for children and a lovely guilty pleasure for adults like myself who once dreamed of going into space. Just ignore the inaccuracies.
Review by Ms. H. Sinton for Space Camp
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Space Camp is about a group of youngsters attending the summer school of the title. During their time there they learn about becoming astronauts, NASA, the space programme etc. There are the usual teenage conflicts between some members of the group and authority.
When they get the chance to actually sit in a Shuttle whilst tests are made they think that is the ultimate adventure. Unfortunately a robot called JINX who has befriended Max (a very young Joaquin Phoenix), decided to help Max get into space for real and ensures the Shuttle is actually launched. This is where the group realise what adventure really is!
Formulaic movie with no real surprises but still quite a good film to watch, particularly for the youngsters. There are no extras (not even subtitles for the deaf) but it’s a low enough price to forgive that.
Review by SpaceBoy for Space Camp
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And this one time…at Space Camp…I kissed a girl under the SRBs (Solid Rocket Boosters)…and I got to go around and re-live different scenes from the movie, especially repeating all of Leaf Phoenix’s star wars references during mission simulations..it was too much fun…LOL…but still true… Certainly, there are tons of things wrong about the movie that would never happen at Space Camp or in real life, but that’s hollywood and that’s what makes it fun. And when this was made, Space Camp itself was a pipe dream for many kids and the lucky few who got to attend as youngsters were treated like Gods, and are still revered today, so this movie was a way for us poor folks to go to camp without forking out the bucks. Therefore to those of us who actually grew up in the 80′s and remember seeing this move in the theater and the excitement of a space shuttle launch and still have dreams of being an astronaut, and for those of us who have worked at Space Camp its’ definately a priceless jewel in the DVD treasure chest.